The journey of an international student through the MBA process

My first interview: The details

Earlier this week, I had my interview with Booth. Given that this was my first one, I had a lot of doubts: from how to approach some of the questions to what to wear.

The day of my interview, I arrived 25 minutes before at the coffee shop where we had agreed to meet. The email from Booth said to arrive 15 minutes in advance but I did not want to take risks with the traffic, so I ended up arriving earlier than planned.

Exactly at the set hour, my interviewer showed. We greeted each other and he introduced himself. I already knew a good deal of details about him, as I had obviously stalked him a little before the interview. He is a recent graduate, class of 2016. My first impression was that he was a highly empathic person. I was a bit nervous, but this feeling lasted only for a few seconds as my interviewer made me feel at ease.

What did we talk about?

First, we went through the general questions: professional experience, goals and why MBA. I had no trouble with these questions, as they were the ones I had practiced the most.

After that, it was time for the behavioral questions. Some that I remember would be:

Tell me about a time when you had to sell an idea.

Tell me about a time when you demonstrated leadership in adversity.

Tell me about a time when you had a bad relation with a coworker.

Tell me about a time when you failed.

Later, we went a little deeper into interests and personal contribution. Some of the questions were:

What three words would your friends use to describe you?

What clubs are you planning to join?

What would be your contribution to campus?

Finally, I was asked if I had any questions. Luckily, my interviewer had similar goals to mines. He is working for MBB consulting post MBA. Therefore, I had a lot of questions about the recruitment process and the support you can get from the school and current students. We talked for about 20 minutes, mostly about his experiences.

Overall, we had a great conversation. I got the feeling that this guy was really interested in knowing about me, as he would not interrupt me or challenge my answers, but instead ask to know for more details of a story. I think that I could show my true self and was concise with my answers, so I am really expecting good news from this school.

Now, another long waiting begins to hear the final decision from Booth. December 10th seems so far away.